Edward Graves: Temporal Detective
Chapter 3: Knock, Knock!

The man who called himself Sean Hendricks sat on the edge of the bed in his small hotel room, desperately waiting to hear a knock on the door.

He was waiting for one of his partners, Barnabus Griffyn to arrive with everything he’d need to establish himself in a new time. He was five minutes late already.

Damn you Barney, he thought, what’s taking so long?

He turned on the TV, not that he was particularly interested in this idiotic form of entertainment, but he needed something to take his mind of things. He’d been on edge ever since Barney had called him the previous day and told him that the Black Glove had put a tracer on the Eternity Stone. He’d told him that he’d arrange for a new identity to be established for him in another time period, probably the 14thcentury. Sean wasn’t crazy about the 14th century but Barney had assured him that it would be a good place to lay low for a few months.

Why now? Things have been going good; I was just beginning to settle into this life.

Sean began thinking about Jessica, it was a pity that he’d had to get her involved because he actually liked her. He thought that she may have been a good girl to settle down with, but he’d never know now. He just hoped that the Black Glove didn’t harm her and that they’d just take the Eternity Stone and leave her alone.

I was stupid to think it’d be this easy, why did I have to get greedy? Sean’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. He switched the TV off again and leapt off of the bed.

He bounded to the door and yanked it open. “Finally!”

He was taken aback when he saw Jessica standing there. She had her flowing red hair cascading over her shoulders and was wearing jeans and a light brown jacket, which covered a blue t-shirt that referenced some movie or another.

“I didn’t realise that you were expecting me,” she said.

“No I wasn’t, I’m expecting somebody else actually. Maybe you could come by later?” he said.

“It’s OK I won’t stick around for long,” she said as she slipped by him and into the room.

She looked around the lavish room and let out a whistle. “Wow your hotel room is better than my unit!”

“Yeah, you know, just wanted somewhere nice to stay while I’m looking for my own place.” It dawned on him that she wasn’t wearing the necklace.

“Say, I noticed that you’re not wearing the necklace I got you. I hope you’ve got it somewhere safe,” he said.

“Oh,” she said as she rummaged through her brown, leather handbag, “you mean this?” She held out the silver chain with the brilliant blue Eternity Stone attached. It glowed with a dull, pulsating luminescence that was nowhere near as brilliant as it had shone the previous night.

Sean cringed a little upon seeing the azure gem and immediately thought of the danger it put him in. “Ah you’ve got it with you? Good, good.”

He half expected Black Glove agents to appear in his room at any second. Panicking, he looked at his watch. “Well like I said Jess, I’m actually kind of busy, so maybe you could...”

Suddenly there was a brilliant flash of blue light which made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. He stumbled backwards and reached into his grey suit jacket to pull out a small handgun. He pointed it at the figure that flickered into existence and fired.

The man dived out of the way just in time and did a roll before springing up in front of Jessica. “No, no,” he said, “you’re supposed to say hello and then introduce yourself. Like this - Hello, I’m Edward Graves: Temporal Detective, pleased to make your acquaintance.” Then he kicked a chair straight into Sean’s chest, knocking the gun from his hand. Sean made a move for the weapon but Edward smacked his hand with his cane and then picked up the gun himself. “I seem to be picking up a few of these things lately,” he said. The gun flickered and faded away into a haze of blue light and then it was gone, leaving Edward’s hand empty.

Sean, looking panicked, closed his eyes and his body began to flicker and vibrate as he was bathed in a dull blue light. He started to laugh, until Jessica lunched a fist right across his jaw, returning him to normal and leaving him on his backside, rubbing his jaw. He stared up at her with features formed of pure astonishment.

“You didn’t need to do that,” said Edward. “I told you that I’d seal off the room so that he wouldn’t be able to Flux out.”

“Yeah, well sometimes it feels good to hit a jerk right in the face, especially one who’s left you to be killed by a crazy time-travelling criminal syndicate.” Jessica rubbed her wrist, hoping that she hadn’t broken anything; she’d never punched anyone before.

“Jess,” said a still startled Sean, “what’s going on? What are you doing with him?

“Well, he saved me last night. From the gun-toting killers who were after the super timey-wimey magic rock that you gave me!” Jessica had not intended to yell, but she was kind of glad that she had; Sean looked like he was going to wet his pants.

“Well,” Edward interjected, “technically it’s a time-sensitive Crystalline...” He stopped short when Jessica shot him a penetrating gaze that could melt steel. “Never mind, I’ll stay out of it,” he said.

“So you know then,” said Sean. “You who and what I am?”

“If you’re asking whether I know that you’re a time-travelling thief from the future, then yes.”

Sean shifted uncomfortably and then made to get to his feet but Edward whipped his cane down in front of him, sending him back to the carpet. “Please remain seated Mr. Hendricks,” said Edward. “Or would you prefer your usual moniker, Geoff Proton?”

“Geoff Proton?” said Jessica. “You’re kidding, right?”

“Well, he is from the future.”

“Listen Jessica,” said the thief formerly known as Geoff Proton, “you have to believe that I didn’t intend for you to be put in harm’s way. Did I hope that it would throw the Black Glove off of my scent while I scampered to a safer time and place? Yes. But I knew that they wouldn’t hurt you, I knew that they’d just take the stone and leave.”

“You know, the more you talk, the more I have to fight the urge to punch you again,” said Jessica.

Geoff flinched, which made Jessica smile. Then Edward produced a set of silver handcuffs, just like the ones which he had used the previous night. “As much as I would love to let you mete out your own brand of Justice Jessica, I need to take our thief into custody. But I assure you that he will be punished for his crimes. All of them.”

“Come on man,” said Geoff, “Have you seen the Council’s prison uniforms? They’re grey! Nobody looks good in grey.” He didn’t say another word as Edward clicked the silver shackles into place around his wrists, leaving him frozen in time.

“So is this what you do for a living?” asked Jessica. “Are you some sort of time cop?”

“Well I prefer the term Temporal Detective, but yes, I suppose this is what I do. I investigate crimes committed by other time-travellers, or Archaics as we call ourselves. Not just crimes though, I also investigate mysteries that can’t be solved as well as the odd reality threatening crisis.”

Jessica nodded slowly, “OK, so if you’re an Archaic, what does that make me?”

“Well,” said Edward, “you’re a Linear; somebody who can only take a linear path through time.”

“So how do you do it?” she said excitedly.

“What, time travel? It’s all down to genetics,” said Edward. “It’s believed that everyone has the Archaic gene, it’s just that it lies dormant in most. For we lucky few who can utilise it, it’s as easy as one, two...” He flickered away into blue light. About thirty seconds later, he vibrated back into existence. “Three.”

“You think you’re pretty impressive, don’t you?”

“Are you saying that you’re not impressed?” he asked.

Jessica bit her lip, trying to hold back the excitement that had been building up inside her since the previous night. But then it was as if her emotional damn had broken and everything came flooding out.

She squealed so loud that Edward had to actually cover his ears and nearby dogs were sent into a frenzy. “That is so cool!” she bellowed. “I can’t believe it, I always, always knew that there had to be more to life than just...this!” She swung an arm around, indicating a wall with a painting on it.

“You knew that there was more to life than paintings?”

“No, this! The world; boring, mundane everyday life,” she exclaimed before flopping down onto a lounge chair. She leaned back and ran her fingers through her hair as her heart threatened to explode. She sat up and faced Edward, her face now turned serious. “Do you think that you could teach me to do what you do?” she asked.

“Sorry, as I said it’s genetic, it isn’t really something that can be taught.”

Jessica frowned, “Well, that sucks!”

“Believe me,” said Edward, “if you were an Archaic I would teach you everything that there is to learn about time and how to move freely through it. But unfortunately we can’t change who we are. But having said that, there’s nothing wrong with being a Linear. You’re young and you’ve got your whole life ahead of you and the world laid out at your feet. So go ahead and be extraordinary.”

Jessica shrugged and gave a tight-lipped smile, “Still, I could be even more extraordinary if I could time travel.”

Edward laughed and touched her chin ever so lightly. “Would it be alright if I took the Eternity Stone now? There are some very worried people who would like to have it back.”

Jessica looked down at the blue stone and then handed it over to Edward. As soon as he took it she saw its glow increase threefold.

Edward took Jessica’s hand and placed a gentle kiss upon it. “It’s been a pleasure Miss Lazarus. But we’re destined to meet again, that much is apparently certain.”

“See you later,” said Jessica. “Or should I say earlier?”

Edward smiled and then, with his hand on Geoff’s shoulder and the Eternity Stone stashed in his pocket, he flickered away into a blur of blue light.

Jessica had thought that would be the end of it, but then she felt her body begin to vibrate. She wasn’t in pain but she could feel her body resonating at an impossible speed. She looked down at her hands and saw them moving in slow motion but also leaving a blurred after-image behind as she moved them. Panicking, she tried to grab hold of her left wrist but her hand passed straight through it, temporarily distorting her arm. She screamed but her voice came out as a distorted echo that startled her even more.

She spun on the spot and looked at the room around her where everything was covered in a blue tinge and looked like it was being shaken from side to side, like she was inside a baby’s rattle.

She tried to move towards the door but her feet were useless bricks of lead. She wanted to scream; to cry, but she knew that she wouldn’t help herself that way. She thought of Edward and how he would be able to help her if he were here. She prayed and wished and hoped for him to help her figure this out.

Then funnily enough, her feet transformed from lead to clouds as she felt her body, or whatever corporeal form she was in, drift up into centre the room.

Then ZOOM!

The world below her began to race by at an astonishing speed while she stayed still, albeit still vibrating. People raced around like ants; buildings, trucks and structures of all sort passed harmlessly through her as she hung there, suspended like a fish in a tank. What’s more she could see the world changing as it moved. Buildings grew and shrank, streets turned into meadows and rivers swelled. The people that raced past her were moving through an array of fashions and the cars were becoming progressively older.

Then she was over the ocean. Well at least she thought it was the ocean, with nothing but blue beneath her. But then, everything was blue so how could she be sure? She saw old, wooden Tall Ships skirting around beneath her and then before she knew it she was back over land, passing deserts and jungles and ancient cities. She tried to look ahead but could only see blinding blue light on the horizon.

She could feel the world around her slow down as she entered a grey city of soot and chimneys. Now instead of cars there were horse-drawn carriages and people on foot all around, passing through Jessica as she floated over cobblestone streets. Her ghostly form drifted through a bakery and came out on a quiet street – which a sign identified as Mistfall Crescent - lined with terraced houses and was startled to see one glowing with a fierce blue energy, far brighter than all that surrounded it. She felt herself sinking back towards the ground as she neared the door of the house, a well maintained and stylish looking place, which a series of golden numbers identified as number one hundred and twenty-one. But just as she thought the bizarre ride was over, she felt a burst of pain wrack through her body and she rebounded off of the door and then tumbled backwards down the stairs.

Jessica cursed, which caused several respectable passers-by to stare at her in astonishment before hurrying on their respectable way. Meanwhile, oblivious to the social disruption she was causing, Jessica rubbed the back of her head, surprised at the lack of blood. She was even more surprised when she noticed that her body was no longer vibrating and that the world around her had lost its blue hue. An odd scent filled her nostrils; a strange smoky smell.

Pulling herself to her feet and collecting her handbag as well as the contents which lay sprawled on the ground, she trudged up the small set of stone stairs to the door. She hugged herself in a futile attempt to fight the cold and then, shivering, she raised a fist. But before she could knock, the green door swung open to reveal a dashing gentleman standing in the door way.

“My,” said Edward Graves, “this is unexpected. Would you care for some Tea?” Jessica just stared at him in a state of shock and disorientation. “I’ve got biscuits too,” said Edward as Jessica just stood there, wobbling a little. “I could make some little sandwiches if you’d like,” he offered. Still she just stood there, looking as white as a sheet which was even whiter than her usual shade of white. “Jessica?” said Edward as he waved a hand in front of her face.

“Milk and two Sugars please,” said Jessica. Right before she lunged to the small porch railing and vomited all over a rather lovely Rose Garden.

“So that’s a ‘no’ for the sandwiches then?”